We are Doortje and Jelmer.
Our lives changed forever when Doortje (1987) unexpectedly ended up in intensive care in late February 2023 due to a streptococcal infection that led to septic shock with multi-organ failure. The signs of sepsis were initially missed by emergency services, with nearly fatal consequences.
Finally, after their own intervention, Doortje was rushed to the hospital on the night of February 28 and ended up in intensive care in Sneek. She then spent a tense and uncertain month at the UMCG, including two weeks in an induced coma on a ventilator.
Fortunately, Doortje survived this, but we still experience the effects of this period every day.
We have learned that sepsis often remains undetected until it’s too late.
Although sepsis is No. 1 cause of death in the ICU, 4 out of 5 Dutch people are not familiar with it.
Just like many people, we had never heard of sepsis before.
Even for healthcare professionals, sepsis can be hard to recognize, even though time appears to be a crucial factor in impact.
From the hospital period, Jelmer, freelance video producer, has captured this intense experience. Now we want to use this footage in a documentary to tell our personal story and thereby contribute to raising awareness about sepsis.
Making a documentary takes not just time, but also funding. We invite you to help us bring this documentary to life.
Your support can make a difference and helps us spread this message.
Will you support our project? Every donation helps!
What is sepsis
Sepsis is a life-threatening, dysregulated reaction to an infection, in such a way that organs become less functional. As the condition worsens, organs such as the kidneys, lungs, or brain may begin to fail.
For further explanation, see this page.. Why this derailment occurs in some and not others is far from clear. Read the frequently asked questions.
Although not everyone with sepsis requires admission to the intensive care unit, the speed at which a person becomes ill (or more severely ill) indicates the seriousness of the infection and how urgently treatment is needed.
Septic shock with multi-organ failure
Sometimes people (as in Doortje’s case) develop septic shock. In septic shock, blood pressure drops dangerously low, reducing the amount of blood and oxygen reaching the organs. As a result, organs become damaged and may eventually fail; this is known as multi-organ failure.
Read more here www.thuisarts.nl and www.sepsis-en-daarna.nl
What happened to Doortje
Doortje was admitted on February 28 with sepsis, caused by influenza B (the flu) combined with a double pneumonia. She was found to have cavitating pneumonia (holes in the lung tissue) in her left lung, caused by a group A streptococcus bacterium. This quickly developed into septic shock with multi-organ failure, including kidney failure, and her heart was particularly severely affected. Because her heart was so heavily impacted—which was initially assumed and treated as a heart attack—she was transferred after two days in the ICU in Sneek to the UMCG.
What led up to it
From the beginning of February, Doortje had not been feeling completely well. It was only during the weekend of February 26 that she began to feel seriously ill: she was very warm, had back pain, was coughing a lot, slept poorly, and barely urinated. Because we became concerned, we contacted the out-of-hours doctor service and informed them of Doortje’s worrying condition. Jelmer also mentioned her reddened skin and that she had vomited, after which we were advised to come in.
A doctor examined her, suspected stomach flu and sent us home to get well. Along with the advice, to take paracetamol and ORS (against dehydration) and to contact us again at alarm symptoms or no improvement.
The following day (February 27), we contacted the out-of-hours doctor service again because her condition seemed to be worsening and Doortje didn’t know how she would get through the night. She was still responsive, but extremely weak and barely had any voice left. Above all, she was not herself. Jelmer mentioned that he wanted to avoid saying afterward, “If only a doctor had seen her.” Considering her pain as well, we didn’t feel we could manage the night on our own. We were advised to get suppositories and to visit our own GP the following morning.
The triage nurse and the doctor consulted by phone at that time gave more weight to the assessment of Doortje’s illness made by the on-call GP who had seen her two days earlier than to our our ‘gut feeling’ that something was wrong. As a result, the urgency was downgraded, and in the subsequent process, immediate action was not taken.
We called the emergency number (112)
A few hours after our second contact with the after-hours doctor service, we recognized that her condition was worsening and urgent help was needed. After contacting the emergency call center on the night of February 28 at 1:30 a.m., an ambulance was dispatched with urgency level A2 (non-emergency transport).
We found the wait for the ambulance to be long. Upon arrival, it appeared that they indeed did not realize the seriousness of the situation.
In the ambulance report we requested, it is noted that Doortje was having difficulty breathing and experiencing pain. However, the possibilities considered were kidney stones, the flu, gallstones, or a muscle strain. Her pulse was 134. It was thought that she was hyperventilating and that her shortness of breath and rapid heart rate were caused by the pain.
Still there were no suspicions of sepsis while the signals were there:
- feeling like dying
- rapid heartbeat
- sore throat/cough and voice gone
- shortness of breath / rapid, labored breathing
- red skin
- She had not been able to urinate or sleep for several days.
- urge to move / restlessness
The unbearable pain Doortje was experiencing ultimately convinced the paramedics to take her along. At the emergency department, it was found that Doortje had, among other things, a CRP level of 192, whereas the normal value is below 10. When there is a suspicion of pneumonia, a CRP value of 100 or higher usually leads to the prescription of antibiotics.
At the emergency department, Jelmer’s gut feeling was finally acknowledged—Doortje was gravely ill, and calling emergency services had been the right decision. Her condition looked very serious.
A chest scan of her lungs showed severe abnormalities, and he was informed that she was experiencing sepsis. Doortje was immediately transferred to the ICU.
Although Doortje stayed conscious for a few more hours, this is where her memories end.
That morning, Jelmer started recording the situation on his phone, primarily to keep a record for Doortje.
Why this documentary is important
Fortunately, there are many hospitals, (general) practitioners, and others who recognize sepsis in time. Yet we have since learned that it still often goes wrong. This can partly be because sepsis can resemble other conditions, such as what initially seems like a ‘mild flu.’
But also because it is not properly assessed, people are unfamiliar with the symptoms, it is noticed too late, or the situation is not treated with enough urgency, and as a result cannot be managed adequately.
The video footage Jelmer recorded has proven to be of great value for our own processing and understanding of the situation. In addition, we realize that a documentary can have significant societal value. Although sepsis is a common condition, it is rare for the disease process and the experiences of loved ones to be documented so thoroughly.
Through a documentary about our story, we aim to reach a broader audience, raise awareness of sepsis, and encourage prompt treatment.
Although the footage is very personal and intimate, fortunately Doortje is able to tell her story. We hope that sharing it will make a difference.
Why this crowdfunding campaign
We would like to initiate or continue collaboration with the various people and parties involved, in order to present the story from multiple perspectives through interviews, combined with the video and audio recordings Jelmer made during the hospital period. We are already in contact, hoping to learn as much as possible together along the way. Through this crowdfunding campaign, we aim to build support and engagement.
Funds raised through the crowdfunding campaign will be used for the production, filming, editing, and distribution of the documentary.
We will use this website to keep you informed throughout this journey.
"What an inspiring commitment from Jelmer and Doortje in this new year; drawing on their experience with sepsis, they aim to raise awareness of its early recognition and are even working towards a documentary. The delayed recognition—and consequently the delay in diagnosis and treatment—had a major impact on their lives. They are doing amazing work by sharing their own experiences."
Their initiative to raise awareness of sepsis through a documentary deserves support. They are doing this for those who have experienced the impact of an ICU stay, as well as for those who were not admitted to the ICU. But also for those who have lost a loved one to sepsis—to support them and to show that we will not let this go unnoticed.
A wonderful example of how, together and through various means, we can try to prevent the life-disruption caused by sepsis for as many people as possible in the future, and improve care for those living with its consequences.”
Idelette Nutma – Foundation Sepsis en Daarna
“PEARL DIVING – My favorite and dearest cameraman, Jelmer van Delft, almost lost his magnificent Doortje. Due to sepsis that was diagnosed far too late, Doortje became seriously ill and distant. Jelmer called it ‘pearl diving’ in conversations between Ysbrechtum and the ICU. How do you convey this process of fear, illness, grief over what is gone, and also warn others? By turning Jelmer’s own footage of those days into a documentary.”
Donate and help make this life’s work possible. Because it teaches us everything about love, standing up for yourself, and coming back to the surface.”
Marijke Roskam - www.marijkeroskam.nl